1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing method, apparatus and system in a scanner server system or the like which stores image data from a scanner for photoelectrically reading an image of an original document and transfers the stored image data to a processing apparatus over a network.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a plurality of computers are often connected over a network so as to facilitate a sharing of data and printer resources. As a function therefore, the functions of a print server through which a plurality of users share a single printer and a scanner server through which a plurality of users share a single scanner have come to be valued.
As described above, the scanner server is designed to provide access to a single scanner by a plurality of computers on a network. This makes it possible to obviate the need to provide a dedicated scanner for each computer and simplifies the system configuration.
Unlike the print server for inputting and storing image data transferred through a network and printing out at any desired time, the scanner server requires a real time characteristic such that when an original document to be read is set in the scanner, the original document image is read and the image is stored.
Therefore, while the reading and storing of the document image set in the scanner is being performed in accordance with a command from a particular computer, the scanner server cannot respond to a request from any other computer. Further, while a process requiring processing time, such as editing of an image, is being performed by an execution of the image storage function of the scanner server, requests from the other computers are placed in a waiting state until the process is terminated.
Examples of such processes include storing image data, obtained by prescanning an original document image, in a scanner server, transferring the stored image data to a computer over a network and displaying it thereon, and setting various processing conditions for the displayed image, after which the original document image is scanned again (the final scan) and image processing is performed on the image data obtained thereby.
During such processing, the scanner and the scanner server are exclusively used for that process for a long period of time beginning with the prescan continuing until the main scan is terminated. If all the prescanned images are finally scanned, the processing time for an original document which does not require a final scan is wasted.
The present invention has been achieved in view of the above points. It is an object of the present invention to prescan an original document and, through batch processing, make possible image processing which performs a full scan on the basis of the prescanned image.
It is another object of the present invention to eliminate wasteful image processing and efficiently to make possible a full scan.
It is a further object of the present invention to efficiently use a scanner server which is connected over a network.
To achieve the above-described objects, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing method, comprising: a step of inputting information for specifying a plurality of original documents and information for specifying an input processing job; a step of prescanning the plurality of original documents at a low resolution; a step of entering information for specifying image data of the plurality of prescanned original documents and the plurality of original documents, and information for specifying an input processing job; a step of setting processing information including a scan area and a resolution in the plurality of prescanned original documents; and a step of finally scanning the plurality of original documents on the basis of the processing information corresponding to the information for specifying the plurality of original documents and information for specifying an input processing job.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing method, comprising: a step of prescanning a plurality of original documents which are fed in sequence by a document feeder; a step of storing prescanned image data; a step of previewing a plurality of original documents on the basis of the stored image data; a step of selecting an original document image which should be subjected to image processing from a plurality of previewed original documents; and a step of finally scanning the image of the selected original document from among a plurality of original documents which are fed in sequence by a document feeder.